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Family Adventure Holiday In The USA

Experience the Wild West as we explore the deserts, lakes and canyons of Arizona and Utah. Walking to the rim of the Grand Canyon, we have breathtaking views of the Nevada Desert. We also visit the famous Las Vegas Strip to explore the bustling city and spend a night under the stars in Monument Valley.

Tour Highlights

Las Vegas - Stay at the Golden Nugget Hotel which has a waterslide through the hotel

Grand Canyon - Discover one of the planet's greatest natural wonders

Monument Valley - Stay on a Navajo Reservation where Back to the Future III was filmed

Spend the night in a traditional hogan and a teepee

Zion National Park - Walks in this beautiful national park

Lake Powell - Enjoy activities on the lake such as jet skiing or relax on the beach

Itinerary

1

Tour starts Las Vegas

Join the tour in Las Vegas and check-in at the hotel. Las Vegas is an enigma, a city in the desert that is full of glitz and panache, which has become the showbiz Mecca of America. At the turn of the last century it didn't even exist but today it is home to over a million people and boasts 14 of the 15 largest hotels in the world. It is a modern day El Dorado, where Egyptian Pyramids and Arthurian Castles share the desert haze with Venice, Paris and the New York skyline.

Overnight: Comfortable HotelSwimming Pool Available

Included Meals:
None

2

In Las Vegas; cruise The Strip

This morning we take a tour of the famous Vegas Strip. If travel is to experience, then Las Vegas will not fail to impress or amaze. From the bizarre to the tacky, there is always something to grab your attention. In front of the Mirage hotel you can witness a live volcano eruption while at the next corner furious pirates fight for their liberty at the Treasure Island. There is also the magical water light show at the Bellagio, the recreation of Venice at the Venetian or you can even climb to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Still the most breathtaking view over the city is from the top of the 350m Stratosphere Tower, the tallest freestanding observation tower in the United States.

Overnight: Comfortable HotelSwimming Pool Available

Included Meals:
None

3

Visit Zion National Park before arriving in Springdale campsite

Today we head for Zion National Park, the first natural gem on our tour through the High Plains. Desert terrain and huge sculpted hanging gardens create an oasis in the desert. Established as a national park in 1919, Zion spreads across 147,000 acres and contains eight geologic formations. Its original inhabitants were the Anasazi, who mysteriously seemed to disappear sometime around the 13th century. They were followed by the Paiutes who named the area Logoon (arrow quiver), holding it in awe and believing it to be inhabited by spirits, so much so that they refused to enter the canyon at night. The Mormons were the first white men to enter the canyon and they christened the place 'Zion' due to it being a place of peace and refuge. The park is a sanctuary for all manner of flora and fauna, from roadrunners, golden eagles and mountain lions, to cottonwood, cacti and desert phlox. After we set up camp, there is some free time to enjoy the visitor centre or undertake some short walks.

Overnight: Simple Camping

Included Meals:
Lunch, Dinner

4

Walks in Bryce canyon and overnight in a teepee

This morning we drive to Bryce Canyon. There is little that you will have ever seen before that can truly prepare you for your first sight of this amazing canyon. Named after a Mormon settler by the name of Ebenezer Bryce, who memorably declared it a hell of a place to lose a cow, Bryce Canyon is a multihued amphitheatre of sculpted rocks or hoodoos which resemble petrified animals or historic figures. Erosion has created these amazing formations out of 225 million year old rocks and it is easy to understand why the Paiute Indians called this place the 'Valley of the Standing Man'. At 2,700 meters, Bryce Canyon can be cold at night so we advise to bring appropriate clothing as we camp in the Canyon tonight. We will have the opportunity to try out some optional walks in the canyon itself. As well as the amazing spectacle of its geological formations, the canyon is also home to a diverse array of wildlife, from small mammals, such as the rare Utah prairie dog, to birds and foxes, as well as the occasional mountain lion and black bear. Tonight we have the unique experience of camping in teepee style tents.

Overnight: Simple Teepee

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

5

Drive to Moab via Capitol Reef

This morning after breakfast we will drive to Capitol Reef National Park where we will view some petroglyphs and take a short hike to Hickman Bridge before heading to our campground in Moab where we will spend the next two nights.

Overnight: Simple Cabins

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Lunch

6

Walks in Arches National Park before returning to Moab

Today we visit the extraordinary Arches National Park, where more than 1600 natural arches have been sculpted over the years by wind, sun, frost and rain which all create a strange rockscape in the desert. Soft Entrada Sandstone - a 91 meter layer of rock deposited as sand during the Jurassic Period - has been eroded into twisted spires, fins and arches which are particularly beautiful in the morning and afternoon when they take on a fiery glow in the low light. The famous Delicate Arch has become Utah's symbol and seems to defy gravity as the large precariously-balanced boulders hover near the edge of a cliff. We will enjoy a gentle walk around the windows loop (approximately 1.5 hours), before returning to Moab later this afternoon. After some free time, we then drive to Dead horse Point in Utah National Park for sunset.

Overnight: Simple Cabins

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Dinner

7

Explore Monument Valley before staying with the Navajo Indians

After a free morning in Moab we will then drive to the biggest Indian reservation in the country, the Navajo Reservation, which was founded in 1888 to provide a protected region for the Navajo people. Monument Valley lies within this vast area and has featured as a backdrop to many Westerns and other Hollywood productions, including Back to the Future III, Thelma and Louise and Wild Wild West. This is the classic wild west landscape. However, familiarity does not prepare you for this amazing spectacle. Pinnacles and towers rocket skywards from the desert floor and the warm embrace of sunset colours alters the landscape's appearance daily. Explore the valley in jeeps with a Navajo guide. In the evening we can enjoy Native American folklore stories, music and dancing around the campfire before we retire to our traditional Hogan for a night like no other.

Overnight: Simple Hogan

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

8

Visit Lake Powell via a visit to Navajo Monument and hike to ruins

This morning we drive to the Navajo National Monument then take a short hike to the Betatakin Ruins viewpoint before driving to Lake Powell which boasts a shoreline length of an incredible 3150km - longer than the western coast of the United States. Part of the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and named after the one armed civil war veteran John Wesley Powell who first recorded his travel through the area, the lake is the second largest man-made lake in the USA and is one of the most scenic lakes in the world. It is also one of the most surreal landscapes imaginable, with more than 96 major canyons, tranquil blue waters and red sandstone buttes. During our stay here, you will have time to do several optional activities available - rent a boat on the lake or you may wish to do one of the many short hikes in the area.

Overnight: Simple Camping

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

9

Enjoy Lake Powell

Today is left free to explore and partake in some optional activities around Lake Powell including a visit to the Antelope Canyon by jeep - a beautiful, peach gold coloured, sandstone slot canyon formed by the force of flash floods coming from the plains above.

Overnight: Simple Camping

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

10

Drive to the Grand Canyon; afternoon rim walk

Leaving Lake Powell behind, we then head to the Grand canyon via a short stop at the Cameron Trading post where we will have the chance to shop for some Native American arts and crafts of this region. On arrival at the canyon, you will be amazed at the length and breadth of this natural wonder as it extends for some 450km from the western boundary of the Navajo Reservation to the vicinity of Lake Mead and the Nevada border. The canyon is also 1,750 meters deep (as deep as the highest of the Rocky Mountains are tall), and averages 16km in width. This afternoon you will have enough time to take a short rim walk before sundown.

Overnight: Simple Camping

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

11

Explore the Grand Canyon; optional helicopter flight

Today is left free for your own exploration of the canyon. It is possible to walk a short distance into the Canyon which does require a decent level of fitness, or for those feeling slightly less energetic, a leisurely stroll along the canyon rim may be more to your liking (both unescorted). Alternatively, you may wish to view the canyon from high above on a helicopter flight (optional). Whatever you decide, the Canyon is one of the most amazing natural spectacles anywhere on the planet with sunsets at the Grand Canyon being something to be savoured. In the evening you may wish to end the day with an IMAX movie presentation about the history of the canyon (optional).

Overnight: Simple Camping

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Lunch

12

Travel along Route 66 back to Las Vegas

This morning we leave the Grand Canyon behind and head back to the bright lights of Vegas. We travel along Historic Route 66 where an estimated 210,000 people migrated to California along this road to escape the despair of the Dust Bowl during the Depression years. The architecture along this ghost road gives an insight into the early days of Route 66 and is rich in Americana.

Overnight: Comfortable HotelSwimming Pool Available

Included Meals:
Breakfast, Lunch

13

Tour Ends Las Vegas

Tour notes

Each departure date has it's own dedicated tour note, detailing all you need to know about that tour. Whether you've already booked, or weighing up your options, please choose carefully the relevant itinerary for you.

We have the following different versions of the Family Into The Wild West tour available at present.

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Why Book this tour

The tour suits families who like to discover a region and are happy travelling around as part of a reasonably busy itinerary with a range of different accommodation types, experiences and natural attractions. The holiday covers the highlights of Nevada and its surrounding states as we stay in Indian teepees, camping in designated camp sites, a night in a hogan which is the traditional home of the Navajo people and a comfortable hotel in Las Vegas at the beginning and end of their trip.